Day Job vs Passion Art Project

I was excited to paint The Chef piece as it has special meaning for me. Almost 4 years ago, I took a leap of faith and retired at the age of 54 to become a full-time artist and to heal my body and soul. With that I have a husband who worked as a Custodian/Groundskeeper/Maintenance worker for a school district.  Several years before I retired, we had a conversation about pursuing passions. Mine was art and his was culinary art. We enrolled him into the Art Institute and he graduated with a degree in culinary arts. When making my decision to retire, we made a decision for him to not work for money but for Passion. He applied for two jobs in Washington and was offered both, but accepted a Prep Cook position at Ivar’s in Seattle. His life was made. He has been able to work in the food service industry as he had always wanted to since he was a young boy.  He promoted and is a Line Cook. He loves his job. His aspirations were to become a Chef, but now he would be content to work t...

Today I finished working on The Construction Worker/ Laborer piece. Like every piece of my art, they usually have a story. This particular piece was created with my "nephew" in mind. Andrew's Mom is my best friend. I met Andrew soon after he was born 25 years ago. Andrew has always been fearless. With that trait, he was very accident prone. He is very high energy. For some reason, Andrew and I connected and truly adore each other. When thinking of a Construction Worker/Laborer, I just had to use Andrew as my model. Since moving to Washington, he has been doing many different jobs as a Construction Worker/Laborer. He's done plumbing and can pretty much fix anything around the home. He is much like his Father. You should see how Andrew landscapes the worst of yards and makes them beautiful. He isn't afraid of hard work and has worked no matter what the weather. The painting depicts one of Andrew's favorite outfits he wears when he knows he is going to get ...

I completed "The Artist" this morning. The Artist represents all artists, thus the blank face. However, as I painted it, it truly represents my favorite artist, Robin Maria Pedrero. Over 9 years ago, I was aspiring to become an artist. I needed direction and like many people, I explored social media. One late night, I was on Twitter. I came across this adorable pear house painting. I told the artist I loved the painting. She responded and a friendship was formed. Robin gave me her Facebook information and her gallery URL. I was in awe of her beautiful visual journeys. I was so intrigued by her art and my connection with it that I now own over 33 original pieces and numerous prints. Along with being a collector of her art, she has supported my love for art as well. She became my muse and mentor. I traveled to Artiste Wineries (Robin won an international wine artist label contest and her art was featured on a special wine label and special blended red wine.) so I could meet...

I'm going to embark upon a big art installation project. As a former HR Manager who retired to become a full-time artist, I'm going to start my "Day Job vs. Passion Art Project" under my new business name CKHeart. I am seeking the world's help for my project to succeed. If you would like to be part of the project, I would like you to donate an article of clothing (no undergarments) you wore to work or part of a used uniform to be cut into strips to be incorporated into the project. I will need you to include your name, occupation and whether your career is your day job or passion. Also, if you would be willing to share this post with your friends to reach as many occupations as possible. Artist Friends are all encouraged to be part of the "passion" side of this project. Your donated article of clothing can be mailed to: Cindy Koch -- CKHeart, 1709 Gregory Way, Bremerton, WA 98337. I will share periodic progress photos as it grows. Thank you in advance fo...